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The U’s best outlet in the opening exchanges was the returning Dunk, who twice got the better of full-back Kenton Richardson before being unceremoniously pulled down.

Snapping tackles was a bit of a theme in the first half, with James Dunne and Clark getting stuck in for the hosts. Their determination in the engine room was matched by Pools captain Nicky Featherstone, who gave his back four good protection.

The U’s improved as Gerry McDonagh saw more of the ball, the striker showing some nice touches to bring the ball under his spell, while one clever turn brought appreciative noises from the crowd.

Richardson was eventually booked for his rough treatment of Dunk, and yet another foul on the U’s winger by the teenager resulted in a free kick close to halfway.

Carroll swung it in and the arriving Leon Legge saw his powerful header flash wide of the far post.

And, in a half of very few opportunities, Luke Berry also headed off target on the stretch from a teasing delivery sent over from the right by Brad Halliday.

Just as on Saturday in Cumbria, McDonagh was replaced at the break by Elito having worked hard to give the opposition defence problems.

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There had been numerous stoppages in the first period and the second began in the same fashion, with the regular breaks in play for free kicks and injuries really not helping the game flow.

Both teams struggled to string more than a few passes together, although Pools were a bit tidier in possession after the break. They also nearly received a helping hand from the U’s when Legge sent a header towards his own goal, with goalkeeper Will Norris having to fling himself to his left to palm the ball away.

Then, in the 64th minute, the visitors broke the deadlock. Appeals for offside fell on deaf ears as a ball over the top led to Padraig Amond feeding Woods, who beat Norris with a nice finish nine yards out.

The U’s needed a response and they soon had their first effort on target of the night through Clark, before Carroll sent a fizzing drive inches wide against his former club.

They went even closer when Piero Mingoia turned his marker this way and that on the byline and sent over a high cross for substitute Paul Lewis to head towards goal, only for Scott Harrison to clear off the line.

With a head of steam being built up, the U’s suffered a blow when Clark was shown a straight red card for a late tackle on Nicky Deverdics.

United had plenty of the ball in the closing stages, despite their numerical disadvantage, but they could still not unlock a resilient Pools defence that survived a last-gasp penalty appeal.